Coronavirus global death toll hits 15,000 as more than a BILLION go into lockdown to stop the spread

Alahna Kindred

23 Mar 2020, 11:38

Updated: 23 Mar 2020, 13:45

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MORE than 15,000 people have died from the coronavirus globally as a billion are set be on lockdown.

Health officials have been scrambling to slow the spread of the killer bug as the number of cases around the world have surpassed 343,000.

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A man lies on a stretcher in Rome as medics try to help the patient amid Italy's coronavirus pandemic

It comes Spain's death toll has topped 2,000 after 462 people died in 24 hours.

The Spanish government has issued a lockdown for some 46 million people who are only allowed to leave their homes for essential work, food shopping, medical reasons or to walk the dog.

Disturbing images from a Spanish hospital have also shown coronavirus patients lying on floors coughing and spluttering.

The shocking pictures were taken in the Infanta Leonor Hospital and the Severo Ochoa de Leganes Hospital in Madrid, reports El Mundo.

The images show coughing patients using oxygen masks on the floor as medical staff wait nearby.

On social media, videos from inside the hospitals have been shared widely with users urging others to self-isolate and follow social distancing guidelines.

ITALY BODY COUNT

Italy is the hardest hit country in Europe as the government announced it was extending its lockdown.

More than 59,000 people are infected with the virus and 5,476 people have died.

Distressing images also show bodies on the streets of Italy as doctors are overwhelmed with the number of patients they are trying to save.

Chilling pictures from Rome on Sunday showed a man lying unconscious at a bus stop while in London people visited the city's parks and crowded public transport.

Doctors in Italy been told to save ventilators for under-60s because of a desperate shortage, according to reports.

One medic said older patients are not being offered life-saving treatment as hospitals have been overwhelmed by thousands of critically ill sufferers.

sraeli doctor Gai Peleg, who is working to save lives in Parma, said things are only getting worse as the number of patients keeps growing.

He told Israel's Channel 12 that in northern Italy the orders are not to allow those over 60 access to ventilators.

The limited number of machines are being saved for younger patients with a better chance of survival, he said.

The images come after it emerged that the UK death toll from the coronavirus is just two weeks behind that in Italy.

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The number of cases in Germany have soared above 26,000, and the chancellor is now in quarantine after a doctor who gave her a vaccine tested positive for coronavirus.

The World Health Organisation has said Europe was now the "epicentre" of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Of the 10 worst-hit countries in the world, six are in Europe.

In the UK, Boris Johnson ordered pubs, restaurants, theatres, cinemas and gyms to shut their doors on Friday night to slow the accelerating spread of the deadly virus.

The PM warned: "We are only a matter of weeks - two or three - behind Italy. The Italians have a superb health care system. And yet their doctors and nurses have been completely overwhelmed by the demand.

"The Italian death toll is already in the thousands and climbing. Unless we act together, unless we make the heroic and collective national effort to slow the spread - then it is all too likely that our own NHS will be similarly overwhelmed."

Mr Johnson called on people to join a "heroic and collective national effort" and follow social distancing advice.

While the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions are the hardest hit by the deadly bug, the World Health Organisation warned young and healthy people were also vulnerable.

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WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: "Today I have a message for young people: you are not invincible. This virus could put you in hospital for weeks...or even kill you.

"Even if you don't get sick, the choices you make about where you go could be the difference between life and death for someone else."

On Saturday China, where the virus originated, reported no new local infections for a third straight day and the WHO said that offered a glimmer of "hope for the rest of the world."

A temporary hospital has been set up in Madrid to cope with the soaring number of casesCredit: AFP

HOW ARE LOCKDOWNS BEING ENFORCED IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES?

Countries around the world are now enforcing lockdowns and nationwide quarantines, but the punishments for flouting them vary from place-to-place

In Spain, residents face fines starting from £90 or even imprisonment if they disobey authorities.

A total of 350 arrests have been made and 31,000 fines handed out to people flouting the restrictions.

One couple caught having sex in a car told police they shared a flat with too many people to get intimate under lockdown, while another four people were fined after being caught taking it in turns to take the same dog for a walk.

The government has also said that any company that can help in the extra production of diagnosis material and protective equipment like masks, glasses, or gloves must contact them or face a fine.

Authorities in China, the first country in the world to report cases, earlier deployed a fleet of drones through which they could talk to people and encourage them to go home.

They also set up checkpoints on the streets and at the entrance of residence buildings where people had to get their temperature checked before passing.

In Italy, Europe's worst-hit country, authorities so far charged over 40,000 people with ignoring the lockdown.

The face fines of £190 and three-month prison terms.

In France, anyone caught outside without justification is being given a fine equivalent to £128, while repeat offenders face detention and ultimately imprisonment.

President Emmanuel Macron this week expressed concern that people were not understanding the severity of the crisis.

In Australia, fines as high as £25,000 could be handed out to people failing to isolate themselves appropriately.